THE FRESHWATER FISH AND FISHERIES OF THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA HISTORICAL REVIEW water angling in the Bay Area. The more common freshwater fish species are listed in Appendix F-l. Ini- The freshwater fish fauna of the San Francisco Bay tial introductions of selected species now occurring in Area is quite varied and supports a large angling popu- the Bay Area are given in Appendix F-2. lation. This was not always so, however; the area orig- About 1884 the State Board of Fish Commissioners inally was deficient in natural lakes and warmwater was concerned about the vanishing Sacramento perch. streams and the many varieties of so-called warmwater The species was disappearing at an alarming rate, pre- or spiny-rayed gamefish. The only native warmwa- sumably because of overfishing and reclamation. More ter gamefish found here was the Sacramento perch recently, the introduction of alien species also has been (Archoplites interruptus). blamed for the perch scarcity. Salmonids on the other hand inhabited virtually Sacramento perch and several non-game varieties every stream. Native populations of rainbow trout found their way into the San Francisco commercial (Salmo gairdneri) were found in most streams with trade to some extent before 1870. They were obtained a year-around supply of cool water. Silver salmon and by seining in the Delta, in the lower reaches of the steelhead also favored the cooler waters and utilized rivers tributary to the Delta, and in Clear Lake, Lake many of the intermittent streams for spawning. County. Salmonids as a group have always been particularly The largemouth and smallmouth basses (Microp- favored both for food and sport and even in the early tenis salmoides and Micropterus dolomieui) respec- days of San Francisco were heavily exploited by an- tively, both highly esteemed as food and gamefish in glers. Besides angling they were taken by spears, traps, the East and Midwest, were among the first varieties weirs, explosives and any other available means. brought to California. They were brought out by Livingston Stone in 1874 and stocked in Alameda As the population of the Bay Area increased be- Creek and the Napa River. By 1890, most of the suit- tween 1850 and 1890, the local redwood forests were able lakes and streams in the Bay Area were well timbered off and public water supplies were devel- stocked with them. oped. Coastal streams suffered from pollution by saw- The white catfish (Ictalurus catus) and brown dust, grist, and siltation. The streams were obstructed bullhead {Ictalurus nebulosus) were introduced by by log jams and were dammed to form water supply Stone in 1874. Panfish and crappies were first intro- reservoirs and to harness their energy for the operation duced between 1890 and 1891 into Southern California of sawmills and flour mills. Records of the Fish and and made their way to Bay Area waters through later Game Commission relating to this early period indi- transplantations. cate the local salmonid fisheries suffered a severe setback. White catfish and brown bullheads increased at such a prolific rate that they supported a substantial com- It is of passing interest to note that the first hatchery mercial fishery from the turn of the century until and fish cultural station in California was established 1953 when the fishery was abolished by the legisla- on the grounds of the University of California at ture. Most of the catch, though landed at Pittsburg, Berkeley in 1869. The station, operated by "The Cali- was made in the Delta. Special fyke nets were em- fornia Acclimatization Society", and operated under ployed. the supervision of Mr. J. G. Woodbury, sold the fish Other freshwater species entering the commercial to the State Fish Commission. catch included carp (Cyprinus carpio), which were Immediately after the legislature established the first introduced from Europe in 1872, and the native State Board of Fish Commissioners (1870) this body hardhead (Mylopharodon conocephalus), squawfish set about to import prominent gamefish species of the (Ptchocheilus grandis), splittail (Pogonicbthys macro- East and Midwest. The black basses, panfishes (green lepidotus), and Sacramento blackfish, (Orthodon mi- sunfish, bluegills, etc.) catfishes, perches, and eastern crolepidotus). For the most part the latter species were brook and brown trout were among the freshwater taken incidental to shad and salmon by the Pittsburg varieties introduced. Most of them did extremely well fleet and landed at either Pittsburg or San Francisco. in their new environment. As a matter of fact, the The Department of Fish and Game issues special per- introduced species now sustain virtually all warm- mits to commercial operators to fish for some of these 128 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME species in certain inland waters infested with them. the latter indicates angler preference and the relative The quantity taken each year through 1958 is shown proportion of anglers fishing for selected species in in Appendix B-2 under the heading "Commercial Region 3 as compared with the rest of the State. Freshwater Fisheries". Catfish landings are shown un- The number of anglers residing in the region was der the same heading. The fishery was discussed estimated at 307,000 and 323,000 in 1951 and 1953, briefly in the commercial fisheries section of this re- respectively. This represented 29.7 and 27.0 percent port. of all licensed anglers in those years. Lack of data makes it impossible to evaluate the freshwater sport fisheries of the past. Sport fishery surveys and censuses are of recent origin, and even CLASSIFICATION OF FISHERIES these encompass but a small proportion of the fisheries. In general, the warmwater fisheries have been ex- panded through construction of water storage reser- ANGLING PRESSURE voirs, while stream habitat, supporting salmon, steel- head, and resident trout has decreased because of water General information concerning angling in the re- development. gion, as compared to the state as a whole, is available from postal card surveys: Calhoun (1953), Skinner The continued growth of the Bay Area has resulted (1955) and Ryan (1959). It was estimated on the in a steady increase in storage reservoirs for municipal basis of these surveys that approximately 30 percent and industrial water supply and irrigation purposes of the State's angling population resided in the Depart- until there are now more than 50 of them distributed ment of Fish and Game's Administrative Region 3, a throughout the nine Bay Area counties. As a conse- considerably larger area than that encompassed by this quence, there has been a steady increase in lacustrine report. (See Figure 3 and Figure 5.) habitat and fisheries. Most reservoirs are best suited The catch of trout, river salmon and steelhead in to warmwater species, but a few, those too cool or this Region is on the order of ten, nine and seventeen fluctuating to support a good warmwater population, percent, respectively, of the state-wide totals for these are often managed as trout lakes. Regardless of the species. Black bass, catfish and panfish each represent type of fishery, all are potentially valuable recreational 20 to 25 percent of the state-wide totals as judged areas. Unfortunately many of the reservoirs used for from the postal surveys. The catch by species and domestic water supply are not open to the public for percentage contributed to the state-wide catch of fishing or recreation. each is shown for Region 3 in Table 38, for five differ- Warmwater species, once stocked in a suitable en- ent years between 1951 and 1957. The percentage of vironment, are usually able to maintain themselves, anglers catching the above species in Region 3 is thus rarely necessitating restocking. Frequently, the shown in Table 39. Table 38 gives an indication of fish become too abundant for the available food supply the species contribution to the state-wide totals, while causing stunted fish. Such fish, though only a few TABLE 38 ESTIMATED CATCH OF SELECTED GAMEFISH SPECIES BY ANGLING IN SAN FRANCISCO ADMINISTRATIVE REGION 1 Trout Black Bass Catfish Panfish River Salmon Steelhead Striped Bass 1951 1,767,000 (9.9)2 170,000 (13.5) 709,000 (16.5) 770,000 (52.0) 1953 1,840,000 (8.8) 540,000 (24.6) 920,000 (14.9) 15,000 (7.4) 34,000 (12.9) 730,000 (54.5) 1954 993,000 (3.7) 486,000 (20.8) 1,713,000 (25.9) 1,648,000 (15.0) 14,000 (7.0) 75,000 (18.3) 747,000 (65.9) 1956 _ 1,983,000 (7.4) 326,000 (12.7) 1,511,000 (22.8) 2,319,000 (22.2) 18,000 (8.7) 64,000 (17.8) 406,000 (46.5) 1957 4,562,000 (14.6) 681,000 (28.5) 3,020,000 (36.3) 2,768,000 (34.4) 25,000 (12.8) 110,000 (20.5) 1,087,000 (60.1) iData from postal survey estimates, Calhoun (1953), Skinner (1955) and Ryan (1959). 2 The figures in parentheses are percentages of statewide totals of each species for the year cited. TABLE 39 inches in length, are capable of reproducing, thus fur- PERCENTAGE OF ALL CALIFORNIA ANGLING LICENSEES ther aggravating the situation. Lakes in which this REPORTED HAVING CAUGHT SELECTED SPECIES IN condition occurs are sometimes chemically treated to THE SAN FRANCISCO ADMINISTRATIVE REGION 3 eradicate the stunted population and are then restocked with a new or different broodstock combination. 1951 1953 Trout 10.8 9.3 Lakes which become infested with carp and other Blackbasses 19.7 21.6 undesirable species which compete with game species Catfish - 22.9 16.2 are similarly treated and restocked. Panfish 16.3 22.3 The Department of Fish and Game maintains an Striped Bass 47.6 48.7 active program of stocking catchable-size, (7-inch), River Salmon - 17.3 Steelhead - 32.6 or, in some cases, subcatchable-size or fingerling trout, FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCES, SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA 129 in streams and reservoirs suited to this type of man- recreational areas, which are not now open to the agement.